Tan See Duo

 

Pianists and CAM faculty Chee-Hang See and Amy Tan created the Tan See Duo in 2010.  In this Spotlight, we sat down with Chee-Hang and asked him questions about his experience with the project.  Here’s what he had to say:

1.  Why a duo?

There was a chamber class that both Amy and I took in the 2010 spring semester at the College of Charleston. We had previously been playing with string players and we thought, what if we played duo piano works? Our common birthdate made it a very appealing idea. The very first piece we put together was the Shostakovich Concertino for Two Pianos.

We applied for the prestigious SURF Grant at the College when Professor Enrique Graf of CofC suggested it. Our intention was to use the grant to travel to Italy and perform, especially our less-known and duo piano works. We got the grant, went to Italy, came back and put up our first concert in the US. People loved it, so we just kept performing as a duo!

2. What are some of the challenges and the rewards of a piano partnership?

Definitely playing together is a challenge. Pianists are very used to playing solo, and playing with another pianist is a whole new experience. Every note and every expression has to be rehearsed to perfection, any inaccuracy is just way too obvious.

As always with working with someone else, we have to discuss and agree on interpretation. That includes everything like how fast a piece is, how loud it gets, how much time to take. It’s not unusual for us to have very different opinions and we spend lots of time during rehearsals talking about these matters.

But the rewards are plenty too. With two pianos, we get to enjoy an immensely huge sound, allowing us to produce more different tone colors, while our strengths in piano complement each other. It is also fun to work with another person, especially since practicing alone in a practice room can get too boring sometimes. We also get to play a more varied repertoire!

3. Tell us about your last performance (or a memorable performance).

Our last performance was at Franke at Seaside on December 8th. We did a free concert for the Music Matters! concert series. It was challenging as we had pianos of two different sizes that sounded different – one was really bright and the other more mellow (funny, we had that same situation in Singapore!).

During our rehearsal we had to decide which pianos we wanted to take, and how to balance the sound. During the performance we had switched pianos in the concert, and at the end ran across the stage again for the encore – that was fun.

4. Tell us about the recognition the duo has received so far.

Since our first concert in September 2010, we have found that the Charleston audience really liked us. Especially Mr. Zeigler, he insisted we play for him, and we did so once in his house when we visited him during the Christmas break. We met

several other duos when we traveled for our competition, and have friends in Chicago and as far as Quebec. We also have some “fans” over in Chicago!

4. What are your goals and plans for the future?

Right now, we are about to graduate with piano performing degrees, and then we will be embarking on an artist certificate at the College in piano duo. We’ll keep performing and competing for as long as people want to hear us. Who knows where that will take us?

Summer Adventures on Double Pianos

Amy Tan and Chee-Hang See, finalists of the 12th International Web Concert Hall Competition, are scholarship students of Enrique Graf at the School of the Arts, College of Charleston. Having formed their duo in the Summer of 2010, the pair have been awarded the prestigious Summer Undergraduate Research with Faculty Grant (SURF) from the College to perform at Music Fest Perugia 2010 in Perugia and Spoleto, Italy. The pair has performed at various local occasions and events. In 2011, they were awarded the Edwin Davis Peacock Award for Excellence in Piano by the College of Charleston School of the Arts Music Department.  They both teach piano at the Charleston Academy of Music.  The following is Chee-Hang’s recount of the duo’s summer “adventures”:

The three months of summer have just flown by. Amy and I have done lots of flying and driving too, traveling to different cities to perform.  Starting in Charleston, we performed at the Young Artists Series at Piccolo Spoleto.  Even before Piccolo Spoleto Festival ended, we were on a plane bound for Singapore, where we made our Asian debut in 4 different concerts. We performed first in the beautiful Esplanade Theatres on the Bay, playing a selection of one-piano-four-hands music. We played in the Concourse which was a huge open area with limited seating.   It was definitely the first time we performed together in front of a moving crowd. Most of the audience who stopped by stayed throughout the performance, even though that meant for many of them, they had to stand for an hour. That was really encouraging for us!

After that, we had two concerts in the historic Old Parliament House in Singapore – renamed the Arts House. As the name suggests, this was where the parliament of Singapore used to have its parliamentary seating. In 2003, it was converted into a premium performing arts venue while still keeping the look of the parliamentary chambers. In this exceptional venue, Amy and I performed two concerts with slightly different programs. Aside from all our double piano music, we also had some string players come and perform piano trios with us on the first night! (And late night suppers with musicians and friends after the concerts – great food!)

Next it was Chicago’s Duo Piano Festival organized by the Music Institute of Chicago. For 10 days, we enjoyed great lessons (two lessons each day!) from great duo pianists, a masterclass, several wonderful faculty concerts, and of course, the student recitals. According to Claire Aebersold and Ralph Neiweem, who founded and directed the festival, this was the first year that they accepted college students for their festival! We had such a good time there that we can’t wait to return again in October, when they are hosting an international duo piano festival in celebration of the 200^th anniversary of Liszt’s birth. The hall that we performed in, the Nichols Hall in Evanston, was originally a church that was revamped into an elegant concert hall.

Of course, spending 10 days in Chicago, we obviously had to go sight seeing. We headed into downtown Chicago a few times, visiting the Adler Planeterium and going up the Willis Tower – the tallest tower (for now, at least) in North America. Standing on the 103th storey outside ledge of the tower, we could look directly down to the streets below. My legs were shaking, but it was definitely an experience not to be missed. We also went into Chinatown for dimsum (if you’re in the area, you have to go to the Phoenix restaurant! They have dimsum the entire day!).  We visited Lake Michigan, North Western University, and watched Emmanuel Ax played Brahms First Concerto at Ravinia. And then finally, we flew across the country to Hawaii, where we saw the wonderful beaches and fish, enjoyed the awesome weather (we escaped from the heat wave!) and played in Blaisdell Center in Honolulu.

That was a little too much traveling for us, but we gained a lot of experience playing in different halls, getting used to different pianos, acoustics, dealing with reluctant piano technicians… And in the midst of that, we learned a lot from the teachers at the Festival, and also had fun and great food. I would consider it a great summer! Now… to prepare for the semester…

A memorable, extraordinary, and musically-enriched summer experience, by Rachael Dawson.

Rachael Dawson is a violin student at the Charleston Academy of Music (CAM) and studies with CAM faculty member Yuriy Bekker, Concertmaster of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra. In this post, Rachael shares with us her “memorable and extraordinary” summer experience with PAI.

For three weeks of my summer, I was fortunate to participate in a wonderful festival in Kingston, Pennsylvania, called the Performing Arts Institute of Wyoming Seminary, or PAI for short.  I worked with renowned conductors, Paul Hostetter for the first two weeks, and Victor Liva for the third week.  I thoroughly enjoyed daily practicing and performing the music curriculum that both Mr. Hostetter and Mr. Liva chose for each of the two orchestras that I played in, the Chamber Orchestra and the Symphony Orchestra.  The performers of both orchestras received their musical pieces on Monday morning of each new week at camp and performed these pieces on that Saturday evening of the same week.

For the first two weeks at PAI, I played Copland’s A Quiet City and Elgar’s Introduction and Allegro, Op. 47, in the Chamber Orchestra.  I was the concertmaster of the Chamber Orchestra for Week Two at PAI.  Mr. Hostetter chose Bernstein’s Overture to Condide, Strauss II’s Die Fledermaus Overture, and all three movements of de Falla’s Three Cornered Hat: Suite No. 2, as the first week of music material for the Symphony Orchestra.  All throughout the second week at PAI, I enjoyed playing Mendelssohn’s Incidental Music to “A Midsummer’s Night Dream” Overture, Op. 21, Mendelssohn’s Wedding March, Op. 61, and Holst’s The Planets, Op. 32, Movements 1 and 2, in the Symphony Orchestra.

I loved playing Mr. Liva’s music curriculum for the third week at PAI.  He chose all four movements of Corelli’s Concerto Grosso, Op. 6 No. 1 in D Major, as the Chamber Orchestra’s performance piece. In the Symphony Orchestra, we played all fourteen movements of Elgar’s Enigma Variations, Op. 36.  I immensely enjoyed playing all of the music that was given to me, no matter how high the level, or how fast the tempo of the piece was.

The Chamber and Symphony orchestras were not the only two music groups that I performed in.  I was also in a string quartet, instructed by Rimma Bergeron-Langlois and other professional string faculty of PAI.  We played the first movement of Mendelssohn’s String Quartet, Op. 44 No. 1.  I played Second Violin in this string quartet.

I also played my solo piece, accompanied by pianist, Tim Burns, in a student recital on Wednesday, July 6, 2011.  I performed the first movement of Bruch’s Violin Concerto, Op. 26 No. 1.  I met once or twice a week with Rimma Bergeron-Langlois, an amazing violinist and musician.  She acted as my private teacher during my three-week stay at Wyoming Seminary.  Rimma helped me with the technical and musical aspects of the piece similar to how Yuriy instructs me when I am home in Charleston, South Carolina.  Yuriy Bekker is the concertmaster of the Charleston Symphony, as well as my private violin teacher at Charleston Academy of Music.

Along with all of my violin ensembles, I sang in the Institute Chorus of PAI.  Every PAI student was required to participate in Institute Chorus for an hour after lunch each day.  I personally loved singing in a chorus that consisted of over 150 singers; I loved hearing how powerful we sounded.  The last of my musical performance ensembles was a group that two of my three dorm-mates and I organized, with the help of several PAI teachers.  An oboist, a piano teacher, and I accompanied a soprano PAI student to the soothing quality of Hardy’s Deep Peace.  Putting together this music ensemble was a stressful, nerve-racking, and rewarding experience that I would have never thought possible had it not been for my ever-supportive friends.

I had numerous opportunities to perform in front of, and with my peers, throughout my three-week stay at Wyoming Seminary’s Performing Arts Institute.  I did everything in my power to receive the most music exposure and to make as many life-long friends as was humanly possible during my memorable, extraordinary, and musically-enriched summer experience in Kingston, Pennsylvania.

A Summer Story of Success and Music

Nick Bentz shares his experience from Aspen Music Festival.  Nick is a violin student at the Charleston Academy of Music and studies with CAM faculty Yuriy Bekker, Concertmaster of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra.

I am spending my whole summer in Aspen, Colorado, participating in the Aspen Music Festival and School and so far it’s been a great learning experience!

The Aspen Music School is one of the toughest summer programs in the country, with over six hundred students representing thirty-six countries participate in the various programs that the festival provides, and many more. This is my fourth summer studying in Aspen, and each summer seems to get more and more exciting. This year, I’ve been able to play in concerts alongside professional musicians, attend world-class performances, and grow artistically.

After auditioning, I was placed in the first violin section of the Aspen Concert Orchestra. Our first program included Strauss’s Don Juan, which is considered one of the hardest pieces in the orchestral repertoire. Christopher Seaman worked with us in five rehearsals to prepare it! The performance was amazing! We were also slated to perform Walton’s Violin Concerto with Gil Shaham. It was an amazing experience to see and hear him play. The week afterward, Joshua Weilerstein, conducted us in Mahler’s Symphony #1, and the Korngold Violin Concerto. The pieces we play are top-notch and the conductors are of the highest caliber. Now, I am currently in the pit rehearsing for a three production run of Verdi’s opera Falstaff at the historic Wheeler Opera House. It’s being conducted by Tomas Netopil, who is an internationally renowned conductor. In fact, this is not the first time I’ve been selected to play in the opera. Two summers ago, I played in Mozart’s Don Giovanni in the pit and as an onstage musician under James Gaffigan. It’s been a great experience to play such diverse programs!

There are six orchestras that give concerts on a weekly basis in Aspen, during the Music Festival. All of the concerts given are varied in their programming, and I have heard everything from Bach to Schoenberg to world premieres from the rising stars in composition. Many guest artists play alongside the orchestras in special concerts, such as Gil Shaham’s cycle of violin concertos written in the 1930s, and Jean-Yves Thibaudet’s performance of the Ravel Piano Concerto. It has been a truly inspiring experience to see such amazing performers showcase their virtuosity.

Undoubtedly, the best experience in Aspen is taking private lessons from some of the top teachers in the world. For the past four summers, I have studied with Herbert Greenberg, the String Chair for the Peabody Conservatory at Johns Hopkins in Baltimore. He has helped me to grow exponentially over the years, and he continues to make me strive for the best in myself and my ability. Mr. Greenberg was also Yuriy Bekker’s teacher at Peabody and at Aspen (Yuriy Bekker is the concertmaster of the Charleston Symphony Orchestra). I study with Mr. Bekker in Charleston, at the Charleston Academy of Music.

Aspen is such a beautiful place to learn and make music. I look forward to the rest of my summer here!

Words from a CAM Violin Instructor

Mrs. Wheeler, Rachael, & Mr. Bekker

I’m so proud of Rachael.  She started violin with me at Ashley Hall when she was in Kindergarten.  Last year it was time to move on and she auditioned for Yuriy Bekker, Concertmaster of the CSO.  He accepted her.  Yuriy demands at least 2 hours of practice every day and Rachael gets up in the morning before going to Academic Magnet to do just that.  She plays with feeling.  Without feeling the music, it is just a bunch of notes but Rachael turns her notes into emotion from her heart and it is wonderful to hear.

- Kay Wheeler, CAM Violin Instructor

Kind Words from a CAM Parent

Mrs. Wheeler has taught our son since he was 4 years old. Our son, Benjamin, describes her as being funny, fun, “the best violinist” and very nice. He has so much respect for her. She is a VERY important person in his world. We attended a music camp last summer in another city and came home wanting a “Camp Kay Wheeler” instead. We are excited to attend the summer camps offered by CAM this June at The College of Charleston.

Mrs. Wheeler’s ability to connect with children 4 years old and older is uncanny. She has panache for teaching the instrument to little children who can’t even tie their shoes. The children learn and they learn quickly. The environment at CAM is remarkable for excellence and growth and development in so many areas. Mrs. Wheeler and all the teachers at CAM have a way of making all individuals that spend time there want to become more well rounded and intentional in their lives.

We have a particular fondness for Mrs. Wheeler and CAM!

Heather Halford

Mother of Benjamin & Charlotte Grace Halford

Open House featuring Kay Wheeler

Mrs. Wheeler’s students performing at the Little Mozart Circus

We hope you will join us at CAM Thursday, May 12 at 6:00 for an Open House featuring CAM violin instructor Kay Wheeler.  Mrs. Wheeler will discuss the strings program and workshops.  All are welcome to attend!

To RSVP, contact the CAM office at 843-805-7794 or cam746@yahoo.com.

Kay Wheeler grew up in Colorado, began playing violin at six and has studied with James Caesar at Wichita University, Alan Grishman at the University of New Hampshire, Roger Shermont of the Boston Symphony and in a Master Class with Isaac Stern.  Her first professional job at eighteen was playing in the orchestra for Nat “King” Cole at the Colorado State Fair.  Kay graduated cum laude in Music Education with a major in violin from the University of New Hampshire.  She has played with the New Hampshire Philharmonic, the New Hampshire Symphony, the Portland Symphony and the Nashua Symphony.  In 1978 she was a recipient of The American String Teachers Workshop Scholarship Award with Paul Rolland.  From there she began her Suzuki teaching studies with Helen Brunner of London, the Reunings at Cornell University, Louise Wear in New Hampshire and Shinichi Suzuki in a Philadelphia workshop.  Mrs. Wheeler has been a registered Suzuki teacher since 1980.  She took Karl Roy’s Clinic on Basic Violin Repair at the University of New Hampshire and likes to dabble with old unloved violins.  Before moving to SC in 1987, she was administrator for the Strawbery Banke Chamber Music Festival and director of the Portsmouth, NH Suzuki Program and Student Orchestra.

Letter from a CAM Parent

I wanted to tell you how much our entire family enjoyed the master class with Enrique Graf on Tuesday evening [3/29/10].  It was our first experience attending a master class and we are hooked!  All the students bravely performed the pieces they are currently working on and were in turn given helpful and encouraging critique of their work by Mr. Graf.  He was honest and attentive while being witty at the same time!  He made the children feel good about what they had already achieved with the piece while also fine-tuning it and giving them a way of looking at it in a new light.  It also became a master class in how to use the pedal! I was especially impressed with Mr. Graf’s care of each individual and his ability to remember student’s names and immediately pick up on each individual’s special strengths.

Thank you for including my son in such a talented group of students. At 7, this master class made a huge impression on him and he was inspired and encouraged to see that his fellow students practice hard and connect so deeply with their music.  It is a privilege that CAM offers so much more than just a weekly lesson and the master class is another extension of creating a student who is a sum of all the parts of music, not just the notes they play.

Thank you for providing such an amazing and enriching environment and a special thanks to Enrique Graf for his time with our students.

Sincerely,

Leigh Sabine

Mother of Aidan Sabine, piano student of Irina Pevzner

CAM Students

The following is an excerpt from a school assignment written by Anthony Leadem.  Anthony is a 3rd grader at Charleston Day School and has been a student of mine since he was quite young – just 4-1/2 years old!  During the past four years we have had our ups-and-downs, just like all students will.  But since our first lesson, when he learned Take Off, he has come so far!  I love his energy and enthusiasm and really admire how hard he has been working this semester.  I’m so proud of you, Anthony!

- Susan McAdoo, CAM piano instructor

WHY SO PROUD?

“I’m going to play piano.”

“OK,” said mom.

I run upstairs into the ballroom and play Ride In a Wagon.  I sit down, move my book so I cannot see it to challenge myself.  You should be so proud of me.

You should be so proud of me because I practice piano and I have improved a lot.  I focus more.  I also look at the book more than I used to.  I do better at playing the right keys.  Piano is awesome.

You should be so proud of me now and forever!

By, Anthony Leadem

____________________________________________________________

CAM STUDENTS GIVE BACK

Last Saturday, CAM students Kinsey and Makeen Hallaba, along with some friends, raised $69.39 to be donated to the American Red Cross to aid in the relief efforts in Japan.  They raised the money in just under an hour while practicing their violin and guitar outside a local grocery store.  The MedCare Urgent Care Clinic matched their donations for a total of $138.78!

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Interview with CAM instructor Marco Sartor

Check out the www.charlestontoday.net interview with CAM guitar instructor Marco Sartor:

Marco Sartor, guitar

Thursday, March 10, 2011

by Peter Ingle

Buy tickets to Marco’s March 15 performance at the Dock Street Theatre.

Classical guitarist, Marco Sartor, lives in Charleston, SC where he teaches at the Charleston Academy of Music, and from where he travels extensively to give concerts and master classes.

Marco was born in Montevideo, Uruguay and is a top prize winner in numerous international competitions. He has performed solo and with chamber music recitals in three continents to critical and public acclaim. He has also appeared with the Allentown Symphony, Virginia Symphony, Buffalo Philharmonic, Regional Orchestra of Chile, and Sodre Orchestra of Uruguay.

His debut solo recording “Red” was just released on Fleur de Son Classics to rave reviews.

Marco is also featured on Marc Regnier’s Grammy-nominated album “Radamés Gnattali: Solo & Chamber Works for Guitar” on Dorian Sono Luminus.

As a sought-after teacher, he has been invited to give master-classes in a number of universities and conservatories in the USA, Uruguay, and Argentina. He also started the guitar programs at the Carnegie Mellon Music Preparatory School in Pittsburgh and at the Charleston Academy of Music.

 He received degrees from the College of Charleston and Carnegie Mellon University. Learn more at MarcoSartor.com.

 

Watch our interview with Marco and listen to him play:

http://vimeo.com/20920273

 

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